Travels through Greece. 311 
1850, may differ 6” from a perfect observation made at that time. 
But, before this can happen, we must suppose, what is scarcely 
possible, that all the three errors are at the maximum, and have 
the same sign. The greatest error that can be supposed is 3” 
at the end of 50 years. We wish the instruments by that time 
may be brought to such perfection that an astronomer can make 
a single observation with no greater error. But this slight error 
may be easily avoided by adopting the corrections of M. Burck - 
hardt. The most important of them is that of the secular mo- 
tion. It is easy to diminish it , of a second per year. ‘The 
two other corrections would give still less trouble; but as they 
are periodic, and often of no consequence, they may in many 
eases he neglected. 
Corrections so little sensible as not to pass the limits of the 
errors of the best observations, may pass for a confirmation of the 
tables, as well as for a melioration of them. We may be even 
sorry for astronomers devoting themselves to calculations so long 
and so fastidious, and yet obtaining only results so little different 
from those which we possessed before. But the tables of the sun 
eonstitute the foundation of all our calculations: they cannot be 
too frequently verified. It is particularly the duty of the members 
of the Board of Longitude to attend to this verification. It was 
on this account that M. Burckhardt has undertaken a still more 
laborious investigation of the tables of the moon, in order to ob- 
tain meliorations of the same kind. The very minuteness of 
these corrections is a most satisfactory proof of the singular per- 
fection which astronomical observations and calculations have 
reached. : 
[To be continued. ] 
LXVIII. Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 
M . Miu, the learned Editor of the Magazin Encyclopédique, 
is at present engaged on a tour through Greece. He has re- 
cently transmitted to Paris an interesting account of the travels 
in Greece of two Danish Gentlemen, Messrs. Koes and Bronsted. 
They were at one period the fellow travellers of our countryman 
Mr. Cockerill. M. Bronsted undertook in 1812 to dig into 
the ruins of Cathaia in the island of Zea, near Attica. He ob- 
tained three female torsos, one of which is of most singular beauty : 
a torso of a colossal statue of Apollo Musagetes: the trunk of a 
horse, and several interesting inscriptions which were engraved 
_ on the pilasters of the temple. These inscriptions contain trea- 
ties of peace or alliance, written in the Doric language, with the 
ABtolians of Naupactos, the Athenians, and the Carystians of 
U4 Euboea. 
